How Can This Be?
by ChipsAhoyPup
Summary: Suddenly, Yuki started to fall forwards--right on top of Mel! "Ahh!" Cried out Mel, blocking by putting her arms up. Two loud poofs filled the air. She looked up. A rat was sitting on her head... and..." Find out what happens! Read and review!
1. The Discovery

**How Can This Be?**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket!**

**A/N Well, I'm not a fan of OC characters, but I had an idea recently. My OC charrie... zodiac but not... it's a confusing realization. You'll understand when you read this!**

**Also, this story takes place BEFORE Tohru. ^.^**

"I can't believe Middle School's almost over," A short girl groaned, shifting her back-pack so that it scooted up to a more comfortable position.

"Yeah. I can't wait until we go to High School," Agreed a taller girl. "But we have Final Exams Monday, you know."

"Don't remind me." The taller girl got onto the bus and the short girl followed her. "I hate Final Exams. They make me want to punch myself."

"Punch? More like kill. God, don't be a goody-two-shoes." The taller girl slid into her seat, and the short girl sat down next to her, on the outer edge. She got off the bus first every day.

"I'm not a goody-two-shoes! I'm... I can be mean," Growled the short girl. "Watch!" She balled her hand into a fist and punched the taller girl lightly.

"Just so you know, that didn't do _anything_," Said the taller girl.

"It's not my fault you're a black-belt, Renn," The short girl scoffed.

"Yeah, not mine, either. You know my parent's said it was either that or a sport, Mel," Groaned Renn for the twentieth time.

"Whatever. Have a good weekend," Called Mel, getting up as the bus came to a complete stop.

"You too," Replied Renn, watching Mel get off the bus.

*********************************************************************

Mel hummed a song that was currently stuck in her head, Funny Farm, while heading towards her house. That's when she noticed something. "This isn't my neighborhood," She said to herself. She turned towards the other people who'd gotten off the bus, ready to question them, but they were gone. "Huh, I could've sworn I'd seen an orange-haired kid and a kid that looked strangely feminine."

"YOU DAMN RAT!" Mel jumped as she heard a voice shout around the corner. She quickly raced towards the corner and looked over to see the orange-haired boy and a silver-haired boy fighting.

"Baka neko. Stupid cat," Replied the silver-haired boy, dodging the orange-haired boy's punch.

"Uh, I hate to interupt your fighting, but why are you calling each other a rat and a cat?" Mel asked. It really was strange. What kind of horrible name-calling was that?

The orange-haired kid looked over, eyes wide, surprised to see her standing there. The silver-haired boy looked kind of bored, as if this was normal. "Because he's stupid," Said the silver-haired boy.

"That doesn't mean anything," Said Mel, blinking. "Is it because of your hair?"

The orange-haired boy looked taken aback. "What? What do you mean, my hair?"

"Well, your hair is orange, like a tabby cat's fur. And _his _hair is grayish-silverish, kinda like a mouse. So, I get where you'd think of each other as a cat and a rat. Although, rat is a nastier term than mouse," Said Mel.

"Pssh. No. It's because--" Started the orange-haired boy, but the silver-haired boy slapped him.

"Shut up," Growled the silver-haired boy quietly. "No, you're right. By the way, I'm Yuki, and this idiot is Kyo."

"I'm not an idiot," Snapped Kyo, his hair standing up spikely.

"Pleased to meet you both. I think. Anyways, I'm Mel. I, er, seemed to have gotten off the bus at the wrong stop." Mel tilted her head in confusion. How had she managed that? The bus always stopped at her neighborhood first. And she was sure that the bus had stopped at her neighborhood, too.

"Oh. Er, uh," Yuki looked puzzled, as if he wanted to help, but didn't know how. "You can come to our house and call home if you want. Maybe get a ride to pick you up?"

"That would be great, thanks!" Mel had a cellphone, but she didn't bring it with her to school. She always left it at her house. She mentally slapped herself for not bringing the cellphone in case of emergencies.

So Mel followed Kyo and Yuki towards their house, wondering if their parents would be okay with a strange girl showing up on their front-step. Once they got to their house, Mel's mouth dropped open. _The house... is made of bamboo and paper..._ How was that possible? Her house was made of bricks. This house looked like it belonged in Japan. _Japan...._ "Uh, where are we?" Mel asked, nervously glancing down at her feet.

"Oh, we're at Shigure Sohma's house," Said Yuki.

"No... I mean... what country are we in?" How stupid that question sounded. But it didn't matter. Mel needed to know.

"Japan, of course," Said Yuki, looking utterly confused. "Where'd you think we were? America?" He chuckled in amusement.

"Actually, yes," Said Mel quietly. She prayed they hadn't heard what she'd said. But Kyo had.

"What do you mean, you thought we were in America?!" Kyo looked pissed.

"I kinda _live _in America, if you want to know," Mel scoffed stubbornly. _Uh oh..._ She realized that she had no way of getting home. And that Yuki and Kyo probably both thought she was insane.

"You said you were on a bus. How long would it take for a bus to drive you all the way to Japan?" Yuki asked softly, curiously.

"Well, Japan's halfway around the world, so I'd have to say about a whole week. But I was only on the bus for 3 minutes," Mel said. She was _totally _confused now. But then, before anyone could say anything else, the door swung open.

"Eh? Who's this?" Said a man with black hair who was wearing a kimono. Mel was surprised at how good it looked on him, but said nothing, just shyly stared at her feet, shaking in nervousness.

"Some girl from America," Kyo growled stubbornly. Mel awkwardly waved hello, wanting to crawl into a hole, away from these people.

"America? Can she speak Japanese?" The man asked, causing Mel's eyes to widen. _I've been speaking Japanese? _This was the most awkward thing in the world. She understood them, and could talk to them! That was crazy.

"Apparently. She's been talking to us the whole time," Said Yuki in his same soft voice. Mel could sense depression and loneliness in his voice. She wondered why, but was still frozen in her fear.

"She seems pretty shy," Commented the man. Shivers tickled Mel's spine; how many times she'd heard people call her shy was amazing. It was because she was practically the shyest person in the world. In school, she barely spoke to anyone, and sometimes, when she was talking to her friends in the hallway, people would gasp, "You talk!" That's how little she spoke.

Yuki agreed with the man by grunting. Mel cried out in surprise as the man crouched down and was just inches away from her face. "Hello, I'm Shigure Sohma," Said the man. Mel was too freaked out to speak, just kinda gaped at him. "I'm not gonna hurt you," Said Shigure, amusement tingling in his voice.

"H-h-hi," Whimpered Mel, her voice as quiet as a mouse. Shigure raised an eyebrow, grinning as if it was the funniest thing in the world. Then, to Mel's relief, he straightened up again.

"Don't intimidate her," Admonished Yuki to Shigure.

"Lighten up," Chuckled Shigure. "I wasn't doing anything wrong. I was just introducing myself." Mel was quaking in her shoes now.

"Why are you so scared?" Kyo snorted. "We're not gonna bite or anything."

"Shigure might," Commented Yuki. He chuckled a bit to himself, and Mel tilted her head at him in confusion. "Inside joke," He told her. Mel nodded. She and her friends talked about inside jokes all day every day.

"You're really short. What grade are you in, shrimp?" Kyo hissed. Mel's eyes widened, as she realized that they were a _lot _taller than her. She was shortest in her grade, so she understood Kyo's question.

"Uh, 8th," Said Mel in her usual shy voice. "I'm going into High School next year." She perked up a slight bit as she gave out the information she'd told every surprised person this year.

"Wow. You're _really _short for what grade you're in." Kyo's eyes narrowed, kind of suspicious. "When's your birthday?"

Mel nervously scuffed her feet against the floor. She hated giving out personal information to strangers. But she _did _know his name now, and it seemed that she may be staying here for a while. "August 24th," She admitted quietly.

"So, you're..." Kyo seemed to be calculating as hard as he could in his head. "...14?" He said after a moment. Mel opened her mouth to answer, but Yuki snorted.

"No, you dolt, she's 13. She'll turn 14 on her birthday. Duh," Said Yuki, coldness chilling his voice. Mel nodded in agreement, shivering from the icy voice of Yuki.

"Hmm, why don't we go inside?" Suggested Shigure. Mel jumped, having forgotten that the man was there. She nodded again. They all scuffled inside, Kyo and Yuki taking their shoes off. Mel looked confused. _Should I take my shoes off? Is that some kind of Japanese traditional thing? _She didn't know, so she just stood there, staring at their shoes questionably. Her face went red in embarassment; she had a feeling that everyone was staring at her. That was the _worst _feeling in the world to her.

"What are you waiting for?! Take your shoes off!" Snapped Kyo. Mel's red face brightened to a deeper red as she shoved her shoes off her feet and gently put them near Yuki and Kyo's shoes. She turned to look at them. They were sitting at a short table with no chairs. Confused, Mel came over and sat at the opposite end of the table. She stared down at her socks, which were still on her feet. She was glad she didn't have to take them off, too; she didn't like having her shoes off at some stranger's house.

"So, how are we to get you home?" Shigure put his index finger and thumb against his chin. Mel felt like a bother now, and still wanted to crawl in a hole. But she continued to remain speechless. "Like we said before, we don't bite," Shigure said gently. But Mel remembered how Yuki'd said that Shigure might bite, so she averted her gaze towards him.

"I was kidding," Yuki informed Mel, seeming to know why she was questioning him with her gaze. Mel nodded and turned to look at Shigure again. She took a deep breath, then:

"My name is Mel, I was on my school bus and when I got off at my stop, I found that I was lost here." Her face turned beet red and she glanced back at her feet again.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Shigure's voice was full of amusement again. Mel shook her head, still staring at her feet. "But I still don't see how to get you home. You're halfway across the world right now." Mel remembered telling Yuki and Kyo that right before Shigure had come out of his door. She wondered if he'd heard her say that, and that was why he was saying that now.

"Y-yeah," Mel whispered. She wasn't going to admit that she'd already known that she was halfway across the world.

"I know! You can live with us," Declared Shigure. Mel's head shot up. _Live with THEM? B-but, it's already awkward enough, and how am I going to do my Final Exams? _Mel worried in her head. _I don't want to make them up over the summer! I'll have less sumer break time! And Japan doesn't even HAVE summer break, I don't think! How am I to go to High School?_

"It'll only be for a while." Mel jumped. She hadn't realized that she'd been in a daze for so long that Yuki was behind her. She looked up at him, worried.

"I-I guess. I-I just... I don't have any clothes except for these, and-and..." Mel trailed off.

"You can borrow some clothes. Uh, I'm sure we have some clothes that'll fit you and look kinda girlish," Said Yuki, sweat-dropping. Mel saw the sweat-drop and was confused for a moment, but let it slide. Japan probably was just that weird that they had odd marks when people had different expressions.

"O-okay," Mel said. If they were offering, then she couldn't pass it down. That would be rude. "I-if y-y-you're sure."

"Don't worry, we'll keep an eye on Shigure," Said Yuki, laughing. Mel chuckled nervously, deciding it was the polite thing to do. "Let's show you your room."

******************************************************

Mel sat down in her new room, feeling slightly depressed. _I won't get to see Mom or Dad or my friends! Or my sisters and brother! I won't get to see any of them for a WHILE. _She was wondering how long she'd be here for. She was thinking of trying to get her parents to give her money for a plane... but she couldn't call over that long a distance!

"Does the room suit you alright?" Mel jumped, as she usually did when she was in a daze and somebody talked to her. She looked up to see Yuki again. She shivered. He kept appearing out of nowhere. It was like he was stalking her.

"It's fine," Said Mel. "Thanks." She was getting a bit less shy, but still was hesitant when answering.

"No problem. It may be a while before you can get home," Said Yuki, looking slightly apologetic.

"Oh, uh, yeah," Mel whimpered, staring down at her feet. "I miss them already." She was referring to her parents, her siblings, and her friends.

"Yeah, I would, too." Yuki looked upset.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Yuki, I didn't mean to upset you," Mel said quickly. Yuki looked over and stared at her. This was the first time Mel had called any of them by their name. She stared back at him, face going red in embarassment as the staring went on. _Uh, what did I do wrong? _Then she remembered, from the animes she'd watched. "Oh, uh, I meant, Yuki-kun?" She said slowly, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Yuki-kun is fine," Answered Yuki before walking away. Mel groaned. Learning Japanese tradition was really hard. She decided to get ready for bed now, and talk to them in the morning. She hustled into her new PJs and got into bed. She then realized that she didn't know what time it was. But she could tell it was night, for the sun was down already. So she fell asleep.

***************************************************

Mel awoke and got into her clothes. She yawned and stretched, again not knowing what time it was. But why should she care? She always used to wake up early, and the sun was up right now. Besides, if she was awake first, she could probably think without Yuki appearing like a stalker again. Deciding not to stay here, she walked down to the small table and sat down at the place she'd sat yesterday.

"Man, you wake up early." Mel jumped and looked over to see Kyo. She sighed in relief; the depressed, emo Yuki was someone she didn't want to see, so she was happy that it was someone else.

"Yeah, I always did in America. You wake up early, too," Mel said, then looked down at her thumbs, embarassed that she'd said something like that.

"It's... it's instinct, I guess," Grumbled Kyo, looking pissed again. "But the damn rat, he sleeps all day! That's so lazy!"

"My sister sleeps all day," Mel offered, so that he knew it was perfectly normal for some people.

"Well, your sister must be a lazy rat, too," Kyo hissed in annoyance.

"Rat?" Mel blinked in confusion.

"...Erm... rat of the zodiac?" Kyo's voice was now awkward, and kinda hoping, as if hoping she wouldn't find out about some kinda secret.

"....Oh! N-no, no, she's an ox, and so is my dad," Mel laughed.

"Haru?" Kyo whispered, narrowing his eyes.

"Eh, what?" Mel was yet again confused.

"Eh, uh, nothing!" Kyo snapped. "Do they seem hard to read for a bit, then suddenly go bl-- I mean, snap and get real angry?"

"Yep. All the time. Why?" Mel grinned a bit.

"Oh, just because... I read the... er... info off of each of the zodiacs... What one are you?" Kyo looked uncaring, like he was just trying to change the subject.

"Me? I'm a boar. But I always wished I was a dog," Mel admitted. Kyo opened his mouth to say something, but his gaze averted behind Mel. She slowly turned her head and saw Shigure standing behind her. She leapt nearly ten feet into the air.

"Now, why would you wish to be a dog?" Shigure asked her. Mel was too scared to say anything, just stared with wide eyes. "And why are you so scared of me? You talk to Yuki and Kyo all the time."

"It's probably because she already knows you're a pervert," Kyo growled. Mel's eyes went even bigger.

"I won't hurt a fly. Just tell me," Urged Shigure, ignoring Kyo's comment.

"Dogs are my favorite animals," Mel told him quietly. Her face went red again and she dipped her head to stare at her feet. Shigure laughed, causing Mel to peek up at him. "Eh?"

"Ahh, nothing, nothing," Said Shigure, waving his hand as if to wave a thought off.

"When did you wake up anyways?" Kyo said indigantly, glaring at Shigure.

"Not too long ago," Was all Shigure said.

"I-is Yuki... kun still asleep?" Mel nearly forgot to say the "kun" part.

"I believe so," Comfirmed Shigure, sitting down at the opposite end of the table. "So... you're a boar?" He gave Kyo an amused stare, though Mel knew he was talking to her.

"Y-yeah," She whimpered. Kyo grumpily turned away, as if to hide his expression from Shigure.

"I see," Said Shigure, staring closely at Mel as if to inspect her. Mel felt her face redden and she stared hard at her feet. "You definetly got the shy aspect."

"Eh?" Mel looked up and stared at him in confusion.

"Oh, we have a friend who's a boar like you," Said Shigure.

"_Friend?_ She's just an annoying cousin," Growled Kyo, folding his arms.

"An annoying cousin who wants to marry you," Replied Shigure smugly. Mel's eyes widened as she thought to herself, _Isn't that illegal? Or is that another one of the weird things Japanese people can do?_

"She wants to kill me!" Snapped Kyo. _Okay, this place is getting weirder and weirder, _Mel thought, squeezing her eyes shut as she thought to herself.

"Doesn't everyone?" Mel's eyes popped open and she looked over to see a really drowsy Yuki lugging himself into the room.

"Hey, when did you get up, damn rat?" Kyo pointed a finger accusingly towards Yuki.

"Why does this matter to you? Are you afraid of getting beat up?" Yuki grinned a bit in amusement, but his eyes were drooping.

"No! I'll beat you! And I'll win and have a rightful place in the zodiac! Haha!" Kyo laughed, victoriously thrusting a fist in the air. Mel blinked.

"Place in the zodiac...?" She questioned. This caused everyone to whip their heads towards her and stare with wide eyes, as if she'd found out something. _Eh? What does he mean by place in the zodiac? The zodiac was made years and years ago! Why does it matter? And, anyways, how could HE get a place in the zodiac? No one does! Just the animals from long ago..._

"Ah..." Kyo's eye twitched, and he looked puzzled, as if he was trying to think of some sorta excuse. "You... see..."

"It's because he's born on the year of the rabbit, but technically, it's supposed to be the cat, and he wishes for the cat to be part of the zodiac instead, because he hates rabbits," Shigure answered.

"Oh, I get it. Kind of," Said Mel, nodding her head agreeingly. Everyone sighed in relief. Suddenly, Yuki started to fall forwards--right on top of Mel! "Ahh!" Cried out Mel, blocking by putting her arms up. Two loud poofs filled the air. She looked up. A rat was sitting on her head... and...

"OH MY GOD, I'M FURRY!" Screeched Mel, standing up. On four paws. That's right, _paws_. "HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?!" She wasn't as bristled about Yuki turning into a rat; the family had been strange enough as it was. But the fact that she was an odd-looking animal was... scary! Even Kyo and Shigure looked startled.

"Calm down, there's got to be an explanation," Said Shigure, but his voice sounded hesitant.

"NO, I LOOK LIKE A CAT MIXED WITH A DOG! WHAT THE FREAK?" Screeched Mel, and as she raced around the room, she smacked into a cupboard. "AHHHH!" The cupboard tipped down towards her, ready to crush her and kill her. Suddenly, she felt two pairs of arms shove her out of the way. And heard two poofs, before the crash of the cupboard smashing into the ground.

Looking over, she saw an orange cat and a black dog. And no more humans in the room. "I WANT MY SANITY BACK!" She sobbed, laying on the floor with her tears pouring down her face in an anime-ish style. Yuki was snoring on her head still, while Kyo was bristling angrily, and Shigure just looked weary.

"Listen. We were lying about the zodiac thing, okay? I'm the dog, Yuki's the rat, and Kyo's the cat. Oh, and, we aren't, ahhh, sure about what happened to you. This has never happened before," Sighed Shigure.

"Well, maybe I'm a weird creature of the zodiac that no one's found out about?" Mel suggested, though she knew how unlikely that sounded.

"Nah. If you were of the zodiac, we wouldn't have transformed when you hugged us, and neither would you. You've never turned into this creature before?" Shigure tilted his big furry head to the side questionably.

"No, not ever!" Mel's tail was bristled. She looked over and saw her reflection in a broken shard of glass. She looked like a wolf mixed with a big cat. Her nose was wet and black, while her eyes were glowing amber. Her tail was a cat tail, and her markings were quite strange. She was obsidian, with a white patch mark around her eye, and two smaller patch marks next to her eye. She had the same marks on her shoulders and hind-legs. Her paws were milky white, and her pointed ears were white as well. Her tail-tip was also white. And she was still wearing her shark-tooth necklace.

"That's quite odd," Shigure commented. Then his eyes widened. "Ah, turn around, turn around!"  
"What, why do I--" Just then, three poofs sliced through the air. And in front of her stood human Yuki, Kyo, and Shigure. Except, one problem: they had no clothes. "OHMIGOD!" Screeched Mel, turning around and racing out of the room, still the wolf creature.

**********************************************************

Mel was sitting opposite of the table. Still a wolf creature. She'd been able to roar, and the others had said she sounded like a panther, so they'd decided that her creature was a wolf/panther. She also could howl like a wolf. It was creepy.

"This isn't... how we planned to tell you what we were. We knew you were going to find out at some point... but we hadn't known you'd transform into something too," Shigure explained.

"I was hoping _no one _would turn into any animals," Mel said. She wasn't as shy anymore, because she still was freaking out inside. "You sure I'm not part of the zodiac? It could've been a malfunction or something."

"No. At the very least, if you were the zodiac, and since you were born on the year of the boar, you'd have turned into the boar," Shigure told her with a sigh.

"How come you guys all changed back and I'm still... a... an animal!" Mel raised a paw to prove her point.

"Another unexplainable answer," Said Shigure. "We don't know why or how or what. We just know it happened."

"Will I ever change back?" Mel's eyes were wide, and Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo all exchanged a glance. Mel's tail lashed in fear. "Please tell me I'll change back!" But no one told her anything, so that night, she went to sleep curled up on the floor, as an animal.

**A/N I had fun making this! Please review, and tell me if I should make another chapter. I want to know if I should leave it as THIS, or go along and make it so that you slowly find out how and why and what she turned into! ^.^**


	2. Stuck in Animal's Clothing

**How Can This Be?**

**Chapter 2**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket!**

**A/N I'm so glad that I got a review! I really wanted to add on to this! So, thanks, rainbows! :D**

Mel sat up, suddenly awake. She looked down. Then her eyes bugged out. _I'm naked! When did that happen? Please tell me no one saw! _She fought back the urge to scream, instead trying to figure out what to do.

"Mel-kun, are you awake?" Mel's eyes widened even more, if possible. _Ohhh, crap! _She leapt into her bed and hid totally under the covers, feeling shivers wave down her spine. "Mel-kun?" _Please don't pull on the covers, _Mel pleaded in her mind as she heard footsteps walk into her room.

Why did Kyo have to wake up so early? And why was he looking for her? She was irritated now; these boys were like stalkers. "Mel-kun?" Kyo's voice called out again. Mel sighed quietly, deciding that if she didn't answer, he'd start searching the room for her.

"P-present," She whimpered, tightening her grip on the blankets that hid her.

"Mel-kun? You said you wake up early. Were you sleeping?" Kyo sounded different than he usually did; when he'd been talking to Yuki, his voice was full of nothing but hate. Now, for some reason, he was acting a bit nicer.

"Not really," Admitted Mel. "I woke up 5 minutes ago."

"Why are you hiding in there? Are you still a wolf/panther?" Kyo's voice was full of pure curiousity.

"...No," Mel said, blushing, even though he couldn't see it. She wanted him to go away so that she could get dressed!

"So... you woke up 5 minutes ago... and your human again..." Kyo's voice was a bit edgy, as if he knew what was wrong but didn't want to say it. "...W-w-when you turned back... were you... ah..."

"Yes." Mel already had guessed what he was going to say, and squeezed her eyes shut.

"That explains alot," Kyo muttered. "Er... I'll leave then..."

"Thanks," Breathed Mel, relieved. She listened to his footsteps quickly fade out of the room and relaxed. _Okay, how to get dressed? _There was barely any privacy in this room, so what was she to do? She then grinned, getting an idea. She ripped the blankets off the matress and quickly wrapped them around her body. She hopped over towards the closet and grabbed her clothes, then shut the door behind her, hiding in the closet and shoving her clothes on.

*********************************************

Mel was human, clothed, and sitting at the table again. She and Kyo were, once again, the only ones awake. Or, at least they were pretty sure. Shigure's odd sleeping pattern meant that he might be awake, but they were positive that Yuki was sleeping, for, they could hear his snoring from here. Wow, did mice snore loud.

"I wonder when I turned back," Mel murmered.

"Me too," Kyo agreed. For some reason, he hadn't acted pissed at all this morning. Maybe he was in a better mood when the "rat" wasn't awake.

"If I could figure that out, maybe it would be easier to find out what I am," Mel suggested, pointing a finger upwards.

"I would think so." Kyo didn't sound like he was listening anymore. He sounded as if he was in a daze.

"Ya okay?" Mel asked, feeling bad. Did she say something wrong?

"Wha? I'm fine!" Snapped Kyo, his usual angry shell wrapping around him again.

"Okay, s-s-sorry." Mel's shy shell wrapped around her. Kyo sighed grumpily, and a large moment of silence hung in the air. Then, drowsy footsteps sounded from outside. Mel looked up to see Yuki, his eyes drooping like they always did in the morning. _Man, he's the total opposite of a morning person!_

Kyo muttered something about a damn rat, like always, and suddenly, Yuki kicked Kyo through one of the paper walls, causing Kyo to crash past it, ripping the paper wall to shreds. Mel stared, wide-eyed. "What the h--"

"That's Yuki and Kyo's usual fight. I was wondering when they'd start beating each other up again," Said a voice behind Mel. Mel jumped and whipped around to see Shigure standing there, smirking smugly at the two. "You turned human, I see."

"Y-yeah. I-I-I'm trying to find out how..." Mel turned away and stared down at her feet.

"If I recall, I heard a poof at about midnight last night. Figuring you turned back, I stayed in my room the rest of the night," Shigure informed her.

"That's nothing like you at all, pervert," Growled Kyo as he walked through the tear in the wall.

"I can be nice sometimes, Kyo," Shigure laughed. Kyo gritt his teeth in a sort of snarl and turned away.

"Midnight..." Mel tilted her head to the side. "Black fur... part wolf... part panther... it all is connected!" She grinned.

"What?" Everyone said at once, turning to stare at her as if she was crazy.

"Okay, so I turned back at midnight. My fur is black, like the night sky. Wolves howl at the moon at night, and panthers are most active at night." Mel furrowed her eyebrows again, though. "Buuuuut... why did I turn into it in the first place?"

Meanwhile, the others all still looked confused. Then realization hit Shigure's face first. (A/N He _is _a writer, you know.) "So, it all is connected to something about night-time," Shigure murmered.

"Yes," Mel said, nodding her head. She bit her bottom lip. "But, wait... the way I turned into one didn't seem very connected to the night time."

"Nope," Shigure agreed. "But, the way we turn into animals has nothing to do with the zodiac, either."

"...You turn into animals by hugging people, right?" Mel was worried; she couldn't hug her parents anymore?

"Well, you're half correct. We turn into the animal of our zodiac by hugging the opposite sex, or going under a great deal of stress," Explained Shigure.

"So... I can hug my sisters and my mom, but not my brother? And if I'm stressed, I turn into it, too?" Mel was getting stressed out already.

"I would guess so," Answered Shigure.

"Awww, great! How am I going to ever be able to get married or anything? What am I to do with the rest of my life? If I get stressed during my Final Exams, does this mean I'll turn into an animal? What if--" While Mel was in the middle of her ranting, the stress leaked all the way into her, like a pick-axe finally striking diamonds. _Poof! _"Damn." Instead of human Mel, there was a wolf-panther Mel. _God, I can't even turn back until midnight now! _

"Calm down, geez," Grumped Kyo, glaring at her. Yuki seemed to snap out of his drowziness.

"Kyo, if I remember correctly, _you _turned into a cat when you first found out about it," Yuki growled.

"So? She can't turn back until midnight now! Weren't you listening?" Kyo hissed.

"It's not her fault she has to wait that long to become human again," Yuki replied, crossing his arms crossly.

"I hate my life," Mel informed them.

"We all do!" Shigure shouted happily.

************************************************************

It was school time. Mel's supposably first day of Japan school. Too bad she was an animal. Literally. And couldn't make it. They called her in, saying she had the swine flu. Shigure thought of that one, since he was the only one who kept bringing up the fact that she was a boar in the zodiac.

Kyo and Yuki had left for school, and Mel was all alone. With Shigure. She didn't know what to do; she didn't have opposable thumbs, so there wasn't much to do anyways. She padded around the house, tail tucked beneath her legs.

Then, a knock at the door. Mel tilted her head and padded up to the door, then sat down, staring at it. Shigure came up to the door and looked over at Mel. "Act natural."

"What's natural?" Mel hissed, so that the person at the door wouldn't hear.

"Act... er... like a dog," Offered Shigure, before opening the door.

"...Woof," Mel barked grumpily. She felt so stupid, but at least she looked like a dog.

"DID YOU FINISH THE MANUSCRIPT?" Screeched a high-pitched voice at the door. Mel's ears flattened against her head and she squeezed her eyes shut. _Yeesh, so loud._

"Come on in, Mit-chan," Was all Shigure said, stepping inside. A frantic lady, who Mel guessed was Mit, raced in.

"DID YOU FINISH THE MANUSCRIPT?" Repeated Mit.

"Grrr," Growled Mel, deciding to complain in the way a dog would. Shigure glanced over at her.

"The dog ate it," Replied Shigure, pointing a finger at Mel. Mel's tail bristled.

_Did not, _She thought indigantly, but said nothing. Though she wanted to. "WHAAAT?" Mit screeched. Then she leapt at Mel. Mel's eyes widened. _What the hell is she doing? _Mel skirted to the side, causing Mit to simply fall to the ground. "SPIT IT OUT!"

"DO-WOOF! WOOF!" Mel had been about to yell something a human would say, but changed it quickly to a bark, while she turned around and scampered away. She heard the clumsy footsteps of the annoying woman chasing her.

"SPIT IT OUT!" _This woman is psycho! _"IF I DON'T HAVE IT, I'LL GET FIRED!" _I DON'T CARE, LEAVE ME ALONE!_

"Midnight, over here!" Shigure called. _Okay, who is Midnight? _Mel thought grumpily. "MIDNIGHT, come here," Repeated Shigure, staring straight at Mel. _Is this my new pet name? _Mel rolled her wolf-panther eyes, but ran over to Shigure. He opened the door, and she quickly leapt out. The door slammed shut behind her, and was louder than it would've been if she was human, sending her tumbling across the pavement.

_Oww, oww, oww! _"Yelp!" Still playing up the dog act, Mel sprawled against the sidewalk. Good thing she was pretending to be a dog, too, because there was another dog in front of her. A real dog.

"Woof," Said the dog. But she understood it, which made her puzzled. _Hiiiii!_ It said.

"...Woof?" Mel said. But for some reason, it seemed like she was talking in dog language. _Hello?_ She'd said.

"Woof woof! Yelp!" _You're creepy! I'm leaving! _Yelped the dog, and it turned tail, running away. Mel blinked.

"Woof." _Random. _Mel turned and walked towards Shigure's house. But the door was shut. Her ears perked up. "WOOF!" She barked. _LET ME IN! _But no one answered. So she padded into the lawn and lay down, falling asleep in the lush grass.

***************************************************

"Mel-kun? _Meeel-kuuuuun_," A voice called into Mel's ear. She leapt up, eyes wide, ears all the way up.

"What? Huh?" She gasped, then realized she was still an animal and her fur flattened slowly.

"Why were you sleeping in the grass?" Yuki said. He and Kyo had their back-packs on, as if they'd just gotten home for school. _Oh, yeah, they probably did. _

"Eh? Oh, it's a long story," Sighed Mel.

"Did the pervert leave you outside?" Growled Kyo.

"Um, sort of. This screeching girl came, and Shigure told me to pretend to be a dog, so then he said I ate his... what's it called? Manuscript, yeah, and so the lady chased me, and then Shigure called me over to the door, so I jumped out, and he shut the door behind me, and then... no one let me in after," Mel explained, exasperated.

Kyo and Yuki exchanged glances. "Mitsu-chan," They said together. Mel stared at them.

"Come on, you should probably get inside," Yuki told her. Mel followed him and Kyo into the house.

"Shigure, where are you?" Called Kyo, eyes narrowed, a vein throbbing on his forehead. Mel's ears flattened behind her head. _Woah, I'd be scared if I were Shigure._

But Shigure was smart, and didn't asnwer. Mel rolled her eyes and padded away, towards the kitchen. Her stomach was growling, as she couldn't remember the last time she'd eaten. When she got to the fridge, she tried to open it by pushing her paw into the opening slot, but it didn't work. She gritt her teeth and started clawing at the door of the fridge. "OPEN!" She snapped at it, but that didn't work either. She continued scrabbling her paws against the fridge's cold surface door.

"Mel-kun? Are you by any chance hungry?" Mel whipped around to see Shigure smirking at the fridge in amusement.

"Kyo-kun was looking for you," Mel informed him, instead of answering his question.

"Ahh, Kyo's too stupid to find me," Shigure replied, and Mel opened her mouth to speak, when her stomach growled loudly. She snapped her wolf-panther mouth shut again, and if she hadn't been an animal, would've blushed in embarassment. "Sorry to say, there's nothing in that fridge. We order take-out." Shigure walked off, probably to find the take-out menu.

_Great, so they don't cook. Wonderful. Do they do anything for themselves? _Mel trotted into the room Shigure had dissapeared into. She wished that she had a full stomach, and that midnight would come sooner. That made her remember something. She found Shigure on the phone, ordering food. She sat by his legs, waiting patiently for him to finish. He hung up the phone and looked down at her. "Want something?"

"I was just wondering... why'd you call me Midnight earlier?" Mel asked, tilting her furry head to the side.

"It just seemed to fit as a name for a dog like you," Shigure simply replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"There you are, Shigure." Mel jumped and turned around to see Kyo, the vein bigger than ever, and throbbing violently.

"H-h-hello, K-k-kyo," Stammered Shigure, backing up, now looking pretty scared.

"Come here, you--!" But before Kyo could finish his sentence, while he'd been running at Shigure, he tripped into Mel. His foot thumped into Mel's side and she squeezed her eyes shut, unable to hold back a yelp in pain. Kyo fell forwards, landing on top of Mel, who was still an animal, and now stuck underneath Kyo. For about 2 seconds. Then, suddenly, a loud _Poof! _hissed out, and the orange-headed Kyo was now an orange-furred Kyo.

"I'm guessing that, even when your an animal, you still turn us into animals," Shigure said, looking quite smug now that Kyo couldn't do any damage.

"DAMN DOG!" Spat Kyo, leaping up and unsheathing his claws. He scratched Shigure numorous times before racing off, towards his room.

"He's about to change back," Shigure explained, sitting up. His face was gouged with some claw-marks and slices, but they didn't look _too _deep. _Poof! _Shigure must've been right, then.

_This is a nightmare, _Thought Mel, while the doorbell rang, and Shigure went to get the food. That night, she ate out of a bowl. On the ground. With her mouth. She wasn't used to it, but she was sure that she was to turn into an animal alot, and be stuck until midnight, so she'd have to get used to it anyhow. After she ate, everyone went to bed, and she sat wrapped in her covers until midnight struck.

**A/N How'd you like that chapter? It was sort of a cliff-hanger, I guess. But I suck at cliff-hangers, so that wasn't much of one! x3 Well, anyways, rainbows, thanks for being my first reviewer! *hugs her* FRIEEEND! :3**


	3. The Unexpected Visit

**How Can This Be?**

**Chapter 3**

**The Unexpected Visit**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**A/N I AM NOW ADDING MY FRIEND'S CHARRIE! Rainbow, Kea shall now be included in the world of my FANFIC! This'll be FUNNNN!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket. JUST MY LIIIIIFEEE! Oh, and I don't own Kea, either. She's Rainbow's! :D**

"Class, we have a new student today," Announced the teacher. _I hate being the new kid, _Thought Mel as she stood there, feeling terribly embarassed. Everyone was staring at her. Staring. "Say hello to Mel Sohma." Yeah, the Sohmas had known that her last name would sound weird here. So they said she could pretend to be their cousin. Hey, she did turn into an animal, you know.

"Hello," Whispered Mel as she took her new seat. Everyone's stares burned into her back. _Just look away, I'm not THAT interesting! _Mel started rapping her fingers against the table as the teacher got into the subject of the day, and droned on, and on, and _on._

************************************************************

_Brrrriiiiiinnnggg! _School was finally over! Why was Japanese school so much longer than freakin' American school? And why was Mel cursing in her mind. She ground her teeth. She usually didn't seeth this much, and when she got angry at people, she would never outright yell at them. Instead, she'd quietly hiss the retort that was on the tip of her tounge too quietly for anyone to hear.

"Ya okay, Mel?" Kyo asked, staring at Mel.

"Get off my back, I'm fine," Mel muttered, saying the "I'm fine" loud enough for him to hear.

"You're acting like you're mad," Kyo continued.

"WHY DO YOU KEEP TALKING?! I SAID I'M FINE!" Mel finally snapped.

"HEY, I'M TRYING TO BE CONSIDERATE! IT'S NOT MY FAULT THAT YOU WON'T TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG!" Kyo retorted loudly.

"I ALREADY TOLD YOU, I'M FINE! SHUT THE HELL UP!" Mel screeched.

"NO YOU AREN'T! YOU'RE--" Kyo was cut off by an indigant voice behind us.

"Why are you guys yelling? Geesh, don't you realize others are nearby?" Kyo, Yuki, and Mel all whipped around to see a new face. Mel's shy shell once again totally wrapped around her.

"H-h-hello. W-who a-are y-y-y-you?" She stuttered. "I-I'm--"

"Yeah, yeah, you're the new girl, Mel. Don't act all innocent. I just saw you yelling at him," The girl growled, pointing at Kyo.

"U-u-uh," Muttered Mel, looking away, blushing in embarassment. _God, why can't I ever hide in my anger?_

"HEY, SHE'S REGULARLY SHY! I MADE HER ANGRY IS ALL!" Shouted Kyo, death-glaring at the girl.

"Whatev. I'm Kea." Kea held out a hand for Mel to shake, purposly ignoring the boys.

"H-h-hello," Said Mel, also putting out a hand and shaking hands.

"So, this orange-head is bothering you, then? Made you angry?" Kea slid over so she was next to Mel only, away from the two boys.

"N-n-no, I... I kinda snapped is all," Mel whimpered, bowing her head in embarassment.

"Miss Kea, would you like to come and visit our house?" Yuki piped up. Mel looked at him curiously. He must've realized that this was the first person Mel had talked to all day, other than Yuki and Kyo.

"Of course. How can I pass down an offer like that?" Kea simply replied.

"By the way, where do you live?" Mel was cautiously retreating out of her shy shell, having a feeling that Kea was trying to be nice now.

"Right there," Kea said, pointing at a house they just passed. "I'd been about to go home, but now that you offered..."

"The house looks empty," Kyo snorted.

"My... my mom's at work," Kea growled, sounding a bit hesitant.

"Oh, cool, where's she work?" Mel was totally out of her shy shell. She grinned in a friendly manner at Kea.

"None of your business," Grumbled Kea, avoiding Mel's eyes. _Oh-kay. Odd. Must be some kinda secret incorporation. Unless it's an illegal job or something._

"Sorry," Mel simply said, and they arrived at Shigure's house. When they came in, they saw Shigure at the table thing.

"Oh, another high school girl?" Shigure asked. Mel wasn't sure if anyone else noticed, but she thought she saw his eyes dance in excitement. She shrunk back a bit, blushing in embarassment.

"Yeah, a high school girl. What's it to you?" Scoffed Kea, dropping her backpack on the ground and taking her shoes off. Mel also took her shoes off, nearly forgetting. It _had _been her first time to come back to the house.

"I'm going on the roof," Growled Kyo, stalking off.

"Big surprise," Answered Yuki, also walking off. _Wonder where he goes after school, _Mel thought to herself. (A/N Probably his secret base.)

"Let's go to your room," Suggested Kea, sounding a whole lot nicer now that Kyo and Yuki were gone.

"Okay," Mel said, leading the way.

*********************************************************

Mel had invited Kea to stay the night, with Shigure's permission, of course. He'd agreed, "as long as Kea didn't hug them." That's what he'd told Mel in private, and Mel had told him she would make sure to keep Kea away.

Now, Mel and Kea were having a pillow fight. It was such fun! Mel wacked Kea with the pillow repetitivly, laughing as Kea fell over. "That's it!" Kea shouted playfully, and leapt on top of Mel. Mel was about to laugh when _Poof!_

Kea was laughing so hard she didn't notice that she was no longer sitting on top of a human. When Kea stopped laughing, she looked down and saw a wolf-panther in her grip. She screeched and fell backwards in fright.

"How did I turn into an animal? A _girl _hugged me," Mel whimpered to herself. Kea's mouth was gaping. Suddenly, she scooped Mel up. "Hey, let me go!" Mel started to swat Kea with her front-paws, but it didn't work. Kea charged down the steps and went straight up to the boys, who were eating right now. Mel and Kea had finished eating early before they'd went up to pillow fight.

"SHE'S A DOG!" Snapped Kea, pushing Mel into Shigure's face. Mel's eyes widened as she saw how close she was to Shigure. If she was a human, her blush would've been as deep as possible.

"WHAT?!" Shouted Yuki, Kyo, and Shigure in unison.

"YEAH, WHAT? I HAD A FEELING YOU PEOPLE WERE WEIRDOS!" Kea yelled.

"Wait a minute," Said Yuki, brow furrowed. "You're a girl," He said, pointing to Mel. Mel nodded. "And _you're _a girl," Yuki added, pointing to Kea. Kea gave him a look that said, "Duh." "So, if you're both girls... then... how'd you transform?" He turned to Mel.

"I don't know! She fell on me! And then I transformed!" Mel cried out.

"Interesting," Shigure murmered, resting his index finger and thumb against his chin.

"Why would you let her fall on you, stupid?" Growled Kyo, looking annoyed.

"EXCUSE ME, I'M STLL HERE!" Shouted Kea.

"EXCUSE ME, I CAN SEE YOU!" Replied Kyo, standing up and shaking a fist in the air angrily.

"HEY!" Snapped Kea, and Mel was whimpering as Kea unconciously swayed her in the air. "WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO, HIT ME? YOU CAN'T HIT A GIRL!"

"Ow," Mel added, hoping Kea would realize that she was still holding her.

"AND _YOU!_ WHY ARE YOU A FREAKIN' DOG?!" Snapped Kea, pointing a finger at Mel.

"I'm not a dog, I'm a wolf-panther," Mel scoffed, her tail twitching daintily.

"IF YOU'RE A WOLF-PANTHER, WHY ARE YOU SO SMALL?" Kea added.

"One, please stop shouting, my ears are extra sensitive. Two, I'm probably a wolf-panther _cub,_ and three, I DON'T FLIPPING KNOW!" Mel shouted the last part, her ears behind her head.

"Fine, I'll stop shouting if you will," Kea said. Then she hugged Mel, placing her chin on Mel's head. Mel felt a sweat-drop slide down her head.

"Uhhh, why are you hugging me?" Mel's voice was shaky.

"Because you're so _cuuute!_ Even if you _are _weird!" Kea replied, stroking Mel's head.

"I won't change back until midnight, so feel pet me until then," Mel replied dryly.

"We're still here." Mel turned her head a bit and looked over to see Yuki, Kyo, and Shigure staring at them strangely.

"I was being sarcastic!" Mel sighed, rolling her eyes. "Just, let me go, please," She said, turning back to stare at Kea.

Kea nodded and respectfully let go of Mel. "Don't stray too far."

"What are you, my mother?" Mel grumbled, licking her paw unconciously. This caused odd stares, and she stopped licking, instead flattening her ears in embarassment.

"No, but I'm your friend. I don't want you to get hurt," Kea said. "You're so small, you could get run over by a car, or attacked by a wolf, or--"

"I'm not gonna go outside, so don't worry." Mel padded towards the stairs. "Let's just... go to my room. I don't want to bother them," She suggested to Kea, tilting her head towards the boys to show who she was referring to.

"Alright," Kea said, nodding her head agreeingly. They started up the stairs. Mel was having alot of trouble getting up them. She had to raise her paws up as high as they could go and scramble her hind-feet to get up. Each step took about 5 whole seconds. It's alot of time to get up a flight of stairs.

Once they were upstairs, they went into Mel's room. Again. This time, Kea didn't pillow-fight with Mel. Mel couldn't anyways, because of the whole no-opposable-thumb thing. Instead, they decided to try to figure out why Mel was turning into a wolf.

"Well, I puzzled some things together," Mel said, tail twitching again.

"Which things?" Kea was always nicer when the boys weren't around.

"Sooo, I turn back at midnight, my fur is black, I'm part wolf, I'm part panther," Mel murmered. "Do you get it?"

"Yeah, it's all connected to night, right?" Kea asked, tilting her head.

"Woah, you got that fast. I had to totally explain it to the boys," Mel sighed, shaking her head.

"Boys are a lot dumber than girls," Kea pointed out. Mel laughed. Then Kea started laughing, too. They laughed together for a while.

"I'm still confused. _Why _did you turn into that?" Kea asked.

"I hate to tell you... those three boys, they turn into animals, too. But I'm not the same thing as them. When the _opposite sex _hugs them, or they get stressed, they turn into their zodiac animal. Yuki is a rat. Kyo is a cat. And Shigure's a doggy," Mel explained, then would've blushed if she was a human, having called Shigure a "doggy" instead of just a "dog."

"Rat?" Kea asked, tilting her head. "Yuki?"

"What?" Mel murmered, confused.  
"Nothing," Kea said quickly. "Well, how come when I hugged you, you turned into an animal?"

"I don't know. I'm trying to figure that out." Mel placed her furry chin on her fore-paws.

"Well, what if it has something to do with night, too?" Kea seemed puzzled, though.

"Hugging people doesn't have much to do with night," Mel muttered. "Good idea, though."

"Mmm," Grunted Kea, sounding deep in thought.

"I'm thinking that..." Mel trailed off and looked away. "Nah, that's stupid."

"What? Just say it, we need ideas," Kea urged.

"Well... my two favorite animals happen to be wolves and panthers... but I don't think that has to do with the fact that I turn into one," Mel groaned.

"Wait! What... what _type _of wolf are you?" Kea inquired.

"I think Arctic, due to the white spots. But I don't see how this--" Mel was cut off.

"It does, Mel! Don't you see? Look, white and black... winter and summer..." Kea murmered. "Day and night, YIN AND YANG!"

"Where does winter and summer come in?" Mel muttered.

"Well, winter for the Arctic wolf, and black panthers probably like the summer more," Kea said, shrugging her shoulders. "So, something about how the yin of the Arctic Wolf and the yang of the Black Panther mixed into you."

**A/N This is the best cliff-hanger I could come up with! I hoped you liked this chapter!**

**Ah, and, Rainbows, I hope I got Kea's personality right! If I didn't, just tell me, I'll change it in the next chapter! ^.^; **


	4. The Spirits of Yin and Yang

**How Can This Be?**

**Chapter 4**

**The Spirits of Yin-Yang**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or Kea.**

**A/N This chapter's going to have the bad Akito. NOOOO! (sobs in emo corner) xD**

"I forgot that you two have to see Akito." Mel and Kea could only quizzically stare at Shigure. Yeah, Mel was human again. It was noon the next day, and Kea was still staying at the Sohmas.

"Who's Akito?" Kea finally asked.

"Akito's the head of our family. You could say that he's the 'God,'" Explained Shigure.

"Ahh, God?" Mel tilted her head to the side. "I'm kinda Catholic, and I know that God is dead. Or, Jesus is."

"Well, the God to the zodiac." Shigure nodded.

"Why do we have to see him?" Kea changed the subject.

"He wants to meet you guys," Muttered Shigure, looking away. Mel wondered if he was lying, but didn't say anything.

"Oh, and, uh... do you think I could stay here a bit longer?" Kea asked, sounding nervous.

"Won't your Mom be worried?" Mel wondered, staring at Kea worriedly.

"No, my Mom's dead!" Kea shouted, then clamped her hands over her mouth.

"What?" Mel and Shigure cried out at the same time.

"I was lying. She's not working. She's dead. I... I just continued living at the house after she died, though." Kea drooped her head and stared at her feet.

"You can live here," Shigure suggested. Mel stared at him. "It would actually be easier, too."

"Why would it be easier?" Kea asked, caution shining in her eyes. She obviously didn't trust Shigure too much.

"Because Akito doesn't want you to tell people about the zodiac," Replied Shigure, giving her a thoughtful look.

"I guess I can live here," Kea said hesitantly.

"Yay, we'll be like sisters!" Cried out Mel. "Except that we can't hug." Kea half-grinned in amusement.

"When are we seeing this God dude?" Kea asked Shigure.

"Probably at 2:00," He said, nodding.

"What time is it now?" Mel asked in confusion.

"It's 12:30," Said Shigure, laughing. _I may be able to speak Japanese, but I can't tell the time here, _Mel thought, trotting up the stairs. Then she had an idea. She quickly set the watch on her wrist to 12:30, so that now, she had the time right there.

"Perfect! Come on, Kea, let's get ready," Mel called.

"Coming," Kea replied. She leaned in towards Shigure and whispered something. He gave her a sympathetic look and nodded his head. Kea nodded back, then raced up to Mel. "Alright, ready."

"What were you saying to Shigure?" Mel hissed as they tromped up the stairs.

"Nothing," Muttered Kea. They went upstairs without another word and got ready to go to Akito's.

**********************************************************************************

Mel and Kea were sitting on their knees in front of Akito. He was much more intimidating than they'd imagined. Shigure and Hatori were outside, claiming that they'd wait for the two girls to come out after they were finished. "So, what do we have here? Two girls who found out about the curse," Growled Akito, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Mel instantly murmered, not knowing what to say.

"Don't be sorry, Mel. It's not _our _fault," Kea said, patting Mel's back.

"Actually, it is your faults. You think you can live with the Sohmas?" Akito's voice was as icy as a blizzard.

"I'M SORRY," Repeated Mel, louder.

"It's not okay!" Snapped Akito. He picked Mel up by the collar of her shirt and pulled her up so that Akito and Mel were at eye-level. Mel could barely breath.

"Hey, put her down! You're choking her!" Shouted Kea, getting to her feet.

"You dare yell at me?" Hissed Akito darkly. "You two don't know what it's like to be a Sohma."

"Mel knows what it's like! She knows what it's like to be cursed!" Kea replied, glaring at Akito.

"She does, does she? She thinks she understands what it's like to be cursed?" Akito pulled his arm back, then whipped it forward, releasing his grip on Mel's collar. Mel squeezed her eyes shut as she felt herself fly through the air.

"Mel!" Screeched Kea. She leapt at Mel, catching her in mid-air, and tumbled to the ground. _Poof! _Kea was now holding a small wolf-panther in her hands. Mel's clothes fell and rested against Kea's knees.

"WHAT IS THIS?" Akito curled his lip as he glared down at the wolf-panther.

"It's Mel, you dumb-a--" Kea started.  
"WHY IS SHE A DOG?" Akito looked pissed and surprised all in one time.

"She's cursed, DUH! And she's a wolf-panther, NOT a dog! I already told you she knows what it's like to be cursed!" Kea screeched. "AND you hurt her!"

"But... you're both girls!"

"No, duh."

"How can she be cursed? There was no wolf-panther in the zodiac!"

"Again, no, duh. No one knows, moron." Kea was now pushing her luck.

"What did you call me?" Akito's eyes narrowed.

"I called you a moron, and I could've called you worse," Kea informed him, looking bored.

"WHY DO YOU GIVE ME NO RESPECT?" Snapped Akito. He picked up a nearby pot and threw it towards Kea. Kea leapt backwards, accidentally dropping Mel. Mel fell right where the pot was aiming. She stood up, getting ready to run, when _CRASH! _The pot had smashed completly into Mel's side. Mel collapsed, blood pouring out of her flank. She let out a yelp before going unconcious, her mouth gaping.

"MEL!" Kea cried out, kneeling besides her friend. "Wake up, Mel, wake up!" Her eyes teared up as she started stroking Mel's side. Blood clung to Kea's hand, but she didn't care, she just kept petting the unconcious wolf-panther.

"_**The ancient curse of long ago, stumbled upon by a stranger.**_"

"What was that?" Cried out Kea, leaping away from Mel, which was where the voice had come from.

"_**The Yin and Yang of the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther, merging together, and sucking itself into a teenager from across the whole of the world."**_

"That's so creepy," Gasped Kea, staring at Mel. Mel's mouth was still gaping, but the words were echoing out of her mouth.

"_**For twenty-thousand years, the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther had been intertwined and stuck in the clouds. The only way they could find a body to rest in is if the body is inhabitable by a love for the two animals. This person had to, also, wait until they're in High School. The Arctic Wolf and Black Panther grew impatient quickly, so they sent the human to Japan early. Only if the human was in Japan could they inhabit this body. They now live in the body, on a mission to bring the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther legend back into the worlds of others."**_

As the words came out of Mel's mouth, so did a white and black figure. It was an Arctic Wolf and Black Panther, intertwined so much that they looked like a Yin and Yang symbol. Once they were all the way out of Mel's mouth, Mel turned human again. Except she was naked. Kea and Akito quickly looked away, listening to the words that continued to echo through the room.

"_**The legend of the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther is that the Yin and Yang gave it a special curse. Once in the body, it was similaur to the curse of the zodiacs. Except that, when hugged by anyone, animal or human, girl or boy, the inhabbited human turns into a form of the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther of them mixed together. This causes it to be impossible for the human to have many friends or love anyone. But there is a mission, and a way to break the curse."**_

"A way to break the curse," Gasped Kea, listening intently while still looking the opposite way of Mel.

"_**To break the curse, one must--**_" The voice stopped abruptly, with a groan from Mel. There was a sound of the Arctic Wolf and Black Panther being sucked back into Mel's body. Mel sat up, a wolf-panther again.  
"What happened?" She groaned, her ears flattened. She looked over and saw the gaping wound, with the blood gushing out. "I'm bleeding!" She screeched.

"Alright, you two," Growled Akito. "I'll allow you to stay. This is because this is the first time I've seen some one with a curse that wasn't the Sohma curse. And, to you," Added Akito, pointing a finger at Kea. "I want you to see how hard it is to try to break a curse. Stay away from trying for the Sohma curse, and try to break your little friend's curse. I hope to never see you two again." With that, Akito vanished into the shadows.

"What happened?" Repeated Mel. "Why am I bleeding?"

"Never mind that," Kea replied. "We have to find a doctor for you." She scooped Mel up in her arms and walked outside to meet Shigure and Hatori.

"What happened?" Shigure and Hatori asked at the same time, staring at Mel's wound. (A/N I wonder how many times people are gonna ask what happened. I dare you to count. XD)

"Akito threw Mel through the air, I caught her, she turned into a wolf-panther, then Akito got mad, and threw a pot at Mel, striking Mel unconcious, and a hell of a lot more happened after that," Kea grumbled, sounding exausted.

"Lucky for you, I'm a doctor," Hatori said. "Did Akito say you could stay?"

"Yeah," Kea grunted. "Hey, did you know about the curse?"

"Shigure told me while you were in there," Hatori explained. Shigure, being his childish self, and getting bored, gave Hatori bunny-ears with his fingers while they were standing there talking. "Please, Shigure, get your fingers away from my head."

"Fine. Can we get going? I'm bored," Groaned Shigure.

"Sure. We need to fix up Mel first," Hatori told him. "While we're going, can you tell me what happened after Mel went unconcious?" Hatori stared at Kea. Kea nodded her head and explained in detail, and as they walked away, the sun set behind them.

**A/N Gah, that took forever to come up with! And it's still not over! xD Phomma was pressuring me to finish this, and I felt just like Shigure, trying to avoid it. ^.^ I HOPE YOU ARE HAPPY, PHOMMA! X3**


	5. Bored Bed Days

**How Can This Be?**

**Chapter 5**

**The Bored Bed Days**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket, or the recipe to the perfect chocolate cream pie. Dammit, I love chocolate cream pie! Oh, and I don't own Kea, either.**

**A/N Poor Mel will be bored for a while...**

Mel bolted up in bed. It had been yesterday that she'd gotten banged up, and Hatori had asked her if she'd minded to stay up until midnight so that she could get dressed when a human. "What time is it?" She asked herself, yawning loudly. She glanced over at her wrist-watch.

"8:30?!" She usually woke up at 7:00, so this was odd. She put her feet on the ground and stood up, about to walk away, but a piercing pain stang in her right side. She gritt her teeth, trying not to make any pained sounds.

"I'd advise that you'd get back in bed." Mel pivoted around to see Hatori standing there, staring at her.

"Eheh, I was just..." Mel trailed off, feeling nervous under Hatori's emotionless gaze.

"Whatever you were doing, you can do it later. You need a couple days rest," Hatori informed her in his doctor's voice. Mel crawled back in bed, trying to ignore her aching side. She lay with her blankets pulled up to her chin.

"But that's boring," Mel complained before Hatori could walk away.

"It may be, but it's the only way to heal." With that, Hatori stalked out of the room. Mel groaned in annoyance.

Mel lay down on her good side, her left. She stared at the wall, hoping to find something like a hole so that she could try to catch a glimpse of something interesting through it. But she ended up finding nothing; just a bare, white wall. _This is dull. I wish Kea would help me get through this._

As if on que, Kea burst through the door. "Mel, you okay?" She growled as she stormed over to where Mel was lounging.

"I'm fine. You look pissed," Mel observed. Kea, looking enraged, kicked the bedside desk over. Mel blinked in confusion.

"I have no one to hang out with because that stupid "God" hurt you!" Kea snapped, her eyes glowing in anger.

"Chill out. Don't take it out on the desk!" Mel cried out, shielding herself with her hands, as if Kea was going to kick her, too.

"What _do _you want me to take it out on?!" Kea barked. Mel flinched.

"Nothing," Mel whimpered, her eyes wide in slight alarm. Kea sighed, relaxing. "Hey, I just remembered something that can cure my boredom! Can you get me a pen and pieces of paper?" Mel felt excited again. She hadn't used her hobby in ages, and this was the perfect time.

"Sure," Muttered Kea. She grumpily left the room again, while Mel sat there, whistling to herself. _I'll probably get a hand-ache if I do it too much, _She thought to herself. Kea barged into the room again. She handed Mel a notepad and a ball-point pen. "What do you need them for anyway?"

"You'll see," Mel murmered, her tounge pushing against her upper-lip in concentration. "Where'd you get this anyways?" Mel's hand was neatly moving in unintolleragable scribbles.

"Shigure," Kea replied, her eyes narrowing and her mouth going up in an evil grin.

"Did you steal it?" Mel stopped scrawling whatever she was and glared at Kea.

"What's it to you?" Kea said, though Mel could hear the amusement tingling her voice, and Kea looked away, avoiding eye contact with Mel. Mel was fearful of getting in trouble for having Shigure's notepad. But she continued moving the pen against the page.

"Done," Mel declared happily, lifting the paper up for Kea to see. On it was a cartoon/anime-ish drawing of her wolf-panther form.

"That's really good," Kea cried out, eyes glittering.

"No, I suck at drawing," Laughed Mel. She hated having people saying she was good at drawing. It made her blush and get all embarassed.

"No, that's great. Don't be modest," Kea told her, laughing a bit herself.

"I have to stay in bed for a couple days. This is going to be _soooo_ boring," Complained Mel, leaning back and putting the notepad on her stomach.

"Well... you can draw," Kea pointed out.

"Yeah, but other than that, there'll be nothing to do. I hate staying in bed," Mel grumbled, crossing her arms.

"Just deal with it for now. I hear you'll have visitors." Kea's eyes slyly slunk to the side.  
"Really?" Mel squirmed in her bed. "Who?"

"I don't know. Some person called Momiji... and an Aaya? I was eavesdropping," Admitted Kea, shrugging her shoulders.

"When you grow up, do you think you'll be a criminal?" Mel joked.

"It's possible," Kea said, laughing.

"Kea, let Mel rest." Mel jumped at hearing Hatori's monotone voice. She turned and gave Hatori a small glare.

"But she's curing my boredom," Mel groaned.

"You need to sleep," Hatori replied firmly. He stared at Mel's hands. Mel's eyes widened in surprise and she looked down at her hands. The notepad and pen. She quickly shoved them under the blanket and gave him a nervous smile. "Is that Shigure's?"

"Yeah, I stole it," Kea growled, saving Mel from having to reply.

"Okay, you can keep it, then." Hatori smirked in a sort of evil way, and he and Kea left the room, leaving Mel all alone. Mel put the pen-tip against the notepad and drew an evil dragon with an evil smirk. Then she drew many more things before falling asleep.

*************************************************************************************************************************

"Is she awake yet? Is she, is she?" Mel's eyes popped open at the sound of a little kid's voice. She looked over to see a small blonde-haired boy hopping up and down. "She's awake!"

"Huh?" Mel blinked the sleepy crusties out of her eyes.

"It's me, Momiji! I'm the rabbit!" Momiji cried out, pointing a giddy finger towards his chest.

"Rabbit?" Mel's voice was full of total confusion. What was this kid talking about?

"You know, from the zodiac!" Momiji nodded his head excitedly.

"There's more?" Mel tilted her head drowsily. She'd thought it was just a dog, cat, and rat. How stupid.

"Of course! And I can hug you!" Momiji cried, leaping at her.

"Don't--" Started Hatori from where he stood. Too late. _Poof! Poof!_ Twin mists surrounded the two.

"I'm sorry. I forgot about your injury. I hope I didn't hurt you," Squeaked Momiji as the smoke cleared.

"It's okay, I guess," Mel muttered, squeezing her eyes shut as the smoke totally vanished.

"Wait a minute! You're..." Momiji's bunny ears were all the way up.

"I told you not to," Hatori grumbled, massaging his temples. He looked like he was under a great deal of stress.

"She's a wolf-panther," Kea answered Momiji's unspoken question.

"But how?" Momiji sounded excited though.

"I don't know," Mel muttered. "Something about Yin and Yang, wolf and panther..." She trailed off, too tired to say anything else.

"You might not want to sleep until you turn back," Hatori murmered. Mel glanced at her watch, which was sitting in her clothes. It was 7:00 at night. _Why is this bunny kid here anyways?_

"M-Momiji, is it? Why are you here?" Mel couldn't help but inquire.

"I'm here to see you, silly!" Laughed the bunny rabbit. Hatori grabbed Momiji gently and the bunny hopped onto the doctor's shoulders.

"Hey, are you from the zodiac, too?" Mel pointed her nose at Hatori questioningly.

"Yes, I'm--" Hatori started, but just then, Shigure popped into the room.

"You'll never guess what his zodiac form is," Shigure said, laughing.

"Shigure, you say anything else, and I'll tell everyone in the family everything you did at the age of five," Hatori growled.

"Okay. My lips are sealed," Shigure affirmed.

"As I was saying, I'm the dragon," Hatori continued, turning back to Mel. Shigure snorted in amusement.

"Oh, that's cool," Mel said, her tail wagging a bit.

"Mel?" The wolf-panther quickly turned her attention towards the door again. A sulking Kyo and a bored-looking Yuki came in. Mel tilted her head to the side. "We brought you your homework." They put some papers in front of her.

"...Thanks." Mel was very ungrateful, though. Her ears were flattened against her head.

"You transformed?" Growled Kyo, in a kind of accusing way, and also in a way that said "baka." Wait, baka? Oh, Mel knew that baka meant stupid in Japanese.

"So did Momiji, baka neko," Yuki said, wacking Kyo in the back of the head. Kyo wheeled around, eyes narrowed.

"Do you want some of this, damn rat?!" Kyo snapped, aiming a punch at Yuki's head. Yuki slid out of the way, and Kyo's fist hit thin air. It soon turned into an all-out battle. Kyo's foot slid to the right under Yuki's feet, trying to trip him. Instead, Yuki jumped over his feet and kicked Kyo in the face. Kyo fell backwards, into Mel's bed. The impact made the bed tip over. Mel yelped as she fell out of the bed. Then it fell on her.

"Mel!" Shouted more than one person at once. Mel couldn't tell who. All she knew was that she couldn't breath from the bed crushing her. Her front paws scrambled around to get away from the bed, but it wasn't working.

"Help," Wheezed Mel as she continued trying to pull. Then it happened. The pain of her wound slammed into her right then, more painful than ever. It knocked the breath out of her, and she stopped scrambling. She was now suffocating from the bed and the pain forming together. "Help," was the last word she got out before it all went black.

****************************************************************************************************************************

Mel woke up, gasping and breathing hard. "What happened?" She yelped, wide-eyed. She realized she was still a wolf and glanced at the clock again. 11:30! How long had she been knocked out?

"Why don't you ask these idiots?" Hatori replied, pointing his thumb at Kyo and Yuki. Mel stared at them, trying to relive what happened hours ago. Kyo looked defiant, and Yuki looked ashamed.

"I'm sorry, Mel. I kicked the baka neko into your bed, and it fell on you," Yuki murmered, staring down at his feet.

"Oh," Mel murmered, ears flattened. "What happened after that? All I remember is blackness."

"Yes, you fell unconcious," Confirmed Hatori. "We got you out from under the bed and found that you're fine. Except that your wound opened a bit more from your squirming." Hatori pointed at her bandaged wound and she sweatdropped.

"Sorry." Now it was Mel's turn to be ashamed.

"I guess we should leave before you turn back," Kyo grumbled. He and Yuki walked out of the room, with Hatori following behind them. He shut the door and Mel lay back in her bed, groaning. She'd have to stay up for another half-an-hour so she could get dressed as soon as possible.

"Stupid," Muttered Mel. Midnight soon came and she turned back. She got dressed quickly and then fell asleep.

**********************************************************************************************************************************

Mel woke up normally, feeling slightly better. But still bored. Nobody was hanging over her bed, thank God. She noticed that the notepad was sitting on the bedside table. She reached over and grabbed it and the pen. She started to sketch out the scene of last night. But since she couldn't draw humans, she drew a cat sprawled into the bed, a rat in mid-kick, a wolf-panther falling out of the falling bed, a dragon glaring at them, and a dog standing there. Also, there was a bunny on the dragon's shoulder, and Mel was trying to figure out what to draw Kea as.

She ended up drawing Kea as a sun, because Kea had brightened up her life a bit more from being her friend. Mel stared at the picture, unsatisfied. She felt like she was missing something for some reason. Why was there an urge to draw a sea creature? She passed the urge off as her imagination and ripped the page out of the notepad, placing it on the bedside table.

"What if..." Mel wondered aloud, but ended up trailing off. What if Hatori was a sea monster, not a dragon? Maybe. But he seemed like he had a complex of people knowing his zodiac form. A dragon's supposed to be a _cool _zodiac. Possibly the coolest, really. So why wouldn't he want people to know his form? It made absolutley no sense to Mel. Before she could think about it any longer, the door creaked open. Mel's head snapped towards the door.

"Mel? You awake?" Came the soft voice of Kea. Mel sighed in relief.

"Yeah, come in, Kea." Mel grinned, happy that her friend was here again. She couldn't handle all this without her. It would've been torture!

"Dragon Dude seems to have a problem with letting people know his zodiac form," Kea muttered, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"That's what I was just thinking about!" Mel cried out, exasperated. "Look." She picked up the picture she'd just drawn and handed it to Kea to look at. "I keep having an urge to draw a sea creature on the page." She blinked questioningly.

"Why am I a sun?" Kea suddenly asked.

"Because you make me happy," Mel muttered, blushing and looking away.

"Aww, that's so sweet, Mel! I'd hug you, but I don't think you want to be a wolf-panther today," Kea said with a teasing smile.

"Not really, after last night... did you know Momiji reminded me of my younger brother?" Mel looked away sadly.

"Try not to think about those things," Advised Kea, patting Mel on the back lightly.

"It's just... my brother... he's a bunny, too." Mel looked Kea in the eyes.

"...Literally?" Kea asked, grinning in amusement.  
"No! You know what I mean. His zodiac sign." Mel looked away. "Anyways... why does Hatori not want us to know his zodiac form? It's a dragon! That's gotta be cool!" Mel was on the bridge of asking Kea to hug Hatori for her. Mel didn't want to end up a wolf-panther. But she decided against it. If _she _hated transforming, then surely Hatori did too. Aswell as the rest of the zodiac. Which was weird, since Momiji leapt at her full-on.

"What if it's _not _a dragon?" Kea looked Mel in the eyes.

"But... if it's not a dragon... then what _would _it be? The zodiac sign is a dragon, so it'd have to be related, right?" Mel knew mythical creatures didn't exist anyways. "What if it's a lizard? Like a gecko or something?" Mel gasped, thinking of how related lizards were to dragons. "OR A BEARDED DRAGON!" Her friend back at home used to have two bearded dragons. They were lizards, though. Not dragons.

"Bearded... dragon? Gecko?" Kea sounded very unrelated to these words.

"Oh... I forgot, you live in Japan... hmm..." Mel trailed off thoughtfully.

"Well, whatever it is, it must be pretty bad for him to not want to tell us," Kea muttered.

"But I want to know!" Mel cried out, staring at Kea. "It's going to bug me forever if I don't find out!"

"I guess it's something that wasn't meant to be found out." So then Kea didn't want to hug Hatori. Mel understood. Hatori was too strict-looking for someone to hug. Besides, it wasn't like it was needed. They could live without knowing the Dragon's zodiac form.

**************************************************************************************************************

It was later, at night time. Hatori had, very begrudgingly, told Mel that she was going to have another visitor tonight. Mel was slightly excited. If it was anyone like the bunny, it would be nice. As long as she didn't fall out of bed again. And, maybe it would be one of her other siblings' zodiac signs. The ox or the snake? Or maybe it would be the boar, Mel's zodiac sign!

Mel was now nervous, though. Kea was sitting next to her on the bed while Hatori... well... "set a few rules" for the visitor. That's what he'd said, anyways, and had left Mel and Kea both confused. "This person's probably Ayame."

"Ayame... that's a really... gracefully _odd _name," Mel muttered.

Suddenly, the door burst open loudly, causing Mel and Kea to both flinch. They're eyes widened as they stood staring at an adult with long, silver hair. He wore... girlish clothes. Mel immediatly thought of a rockstar when she saw his long hair, but when she saw what he was wearing, one word popped into her mind: _gay._ She quickly brushed the thought away, knowing that what he was didn't matter; all that mattered was who he was. And... techincally, what he was, in consideration of his zodiac form.

And his personality. Mel should've thought of that first. "I see that Hatori's held you captive in his humble home!" Ayame burst out. Mel flinched once more, but right away felt ashamed for flinching, because that was really rude. But this guy was _so loud!_ How could someone be that loud? "Why would Hatori keep two lovely princess' stuck in this castle, hmm?" Followed by a booming laugh that nearly set Mel's ears on fire.

"I'm not a princess," Growled Kea, giving Ayame a dangerous glare. Mel shrunk into her blankets, feeling truely shy.

"Please don't start," Mel whimpered quietly. She was directing her words at Kea, but apparently Kea didn't hear her.

"And neither is Mel. And we're _not _being held captive," Kea continued in her same angry tone.

Needless to say, Ayame didn't stay very long. Mel asked Hatori what zodiac he was later, and Hatori told her a snake. Mel sweatdropped, knowing that her sister Allison was a snake, and seeing the resemblance. Drama queens. Hatori informed Mel that this was the last night that she needed to stay in bed. Tomorrow morning, she could get out of bed and actually _do _something! Mel got excited. Also, she could go home after tomorrow.

**A/N And... CUT SCENE! Yes, I'm continuing! ^.^ Anyways...**

**Thanks to the following for reviewing:**

**Phommabouth,**

**Rainbowsarerare,**

**AKAVixen,**

**and SparklesKuromi.**

**R&R, PEEPS! =D**


	6. Watermelon Soccer

**How Can This Be?**

**ChipsAhoyPup**

**Disclaimer: SERIOUSLY. Stop asking me. Cuz I only own Mel. And this story. But I don't own Kea or Fruits Basket. OR CHEESECAKE! Another "Dammit" moment. 3:**

**A/N Yay, bed time's over, and Mel can go wherever she wants! XD I'm listening to different songs, but one that would have to influence this chapter: Livin' On A Prayer. Also, I Do Not Hook Up. X3**

Mel was excited when she woke up. She could get out of bed today! And go home! Not home, literally. Home as in, Shigure's house. Mel got out of bed. Her side still felt stingy, but less than the first day she'd tried to move. She went into the room with the table to find that she was the only one awake. _I hate to say it, but I think I miss Kyo in the morning, _She thought. Stifling a sigh, she sat down at the table and waited.

She did a practical headdesk as she thought about the loved ones at Shigure's house. It was surprising, but they were like her family now. _I'm all alone, here. With the dragon and Kea. Well... I suppose that Shigure's gonna pick us up today. It's not like we're going to stay here with the creepy dragon. Anyways, maybe it's best that we stayed here for a couple of days. It was... a change of scenery. And we met the bunny and the snake! Too bad Ayame made me feel even more nervous to see the other zodiac. But, oh well. We'll still see more of the zodiac, and to think: They could be the key to lifting my curse as well. _

As Mel thought about this, she lifted her head. Why hadn't she'd thought of this before? The zodiac members! They had a curse as well. If she stuck with them until her curse was gone, she'd be fine! She was now hyped up from the facts that were swirling through her mind. She hoped Kea'd wake up soon so she could share her thoughts.

It turned out that Mel was forced to sit awake for a couple of hours. She was stuck to her own thoughts for those hours, since Hatori didn't seem to have anything to do at his house, and Mel didn't feel like creeping around to get the notepad and pen again. _Is Kyo awake too? What if he misses me? No, Kyo doesn't miss anyone. Anyways, why am I thinking so much about Kyo? He was pretty stalkerish when I was there for the first couple of days. Although, I can't say I don't miss that cat. The same goes with the mouse. I kinda... miss them both. Largely. The only time they'd visited me was to give me that crapload of homework. And I finished that easily anyways, since it was just English. English is my favorite subject. Since I love to read and write... Huh. I wonder if Hatori has books I could borrow? Oh, wait, I'm leaving his house today. Then, I wonder if Shigure has books? I don't even know if he works. But he does dissapear during the day. I wonder what he does?_

While Mel was sneaking, Kea had woken up and sat next to Mel, waiting for her thinking friend to notice. When Mel goes in a daze, it takes a moment for her to notice anything. But she snapped out of her stupor and noticed Kea right next to her. "Kea! Morning!" Mel yelped happily. "Listen, I just came up with an idea!"

"Oh? What is it?" Kea sounded excited as well.

"I just realized... don't you think that the zodiac can help lift my curse? I don't know how, but I have a feeling they're connected to it. Otherwise, how would I be living with them?" Mel was giddy. The lightbulb that had brightened her brain up was making her high with excitement.

"Yeah! They have a curse, too! So it'll work!" Cried out Kea.

"Not for _sure, _but there's a good chance," Mel corrected, giving her best friend a sly smile. Then her smile turned innocent. "Hey, Kea? Do you miss any of the boys back at home?"

"No, of course not," Growled Kea, no longer making eye contact.

"Oh. I do. Kyo used to wake up early like me--" Mel started.

"_Used _to? He's not _dead!_ You're going to see him later today!" Snapped Kea, causing Mel to flinch as she usually did when Kea got mad.

"S-s-sorry, Kea. I mean, Kyo wakes up early like me, so I saw him in the morning," Mel admitted, now feeling sheepish.

"Sorry for yelling," Groaned Kea, but she didn't sound like she meant it. Mel was just too happy about the fact that she apologized to care if she meant it or not. She checked her watch.

"It's nearly noon. When do you think we're going home?" Mel asked, blinking in confusion.

"Probably very soon," Kea grumbled uncaringly. After that, they sat in silence, bored out of their minds.

**********************************************************************************************************************

It was time to go home. It was about three o'clock in the afternoon. Mel and Kea had been sitting boredly for a while, until Kea urged Mel to draw more stuff. Mel drew as much as Kea desired until Hatori had woken up. When Hatori had been awake, and in his doctors suit, as usual, he went up to the table and told Mel and Kea that they'd be taken home at around three o'clock. And Hatori was a man of his word.

Mel and Kea scrambled into the car. They got into the back because none of them wanted to be shotgun, "due to safety of the law," or something. But, really, they didn't want to sit next to Hatori, because he was too intimidating. The car started moving, and Mel and Kea started talking to each other about stuff that they weren't afraid to say in front of Hatori, like what movies they could rent, or books they could buy, so that they had stuff to do at Shigure's house during weekends. Since today had happened to be a Saturday.

When they arrived at Shigure's house, Mel felt like she was finally completley free. She knew she had to go to school and stuff, but she just felt too happy to care. She wasn't trapped in bed in that Dragon's home! At least here, Mel had people to talk to. Sure, she had Kea at Hatori's house, but now she could talk to Kyo and Yuki! Mel hadn't realized how much she'd missed the two boys.

Mel and Kea got out of the car and stretched their arms into the air, sucking in the fresh summer breeze and sighing happily. Mel was excited to get inside the house. She was pretty sure Kea was, too, but of course the tough girl would never admit it. They got inside, with Hatori following them. Mel couldn't help but gawk at the sight. Kyo and Yuki were sleeping on either side of the table, as if they'd been waiting for a long time for Mel and Kea to come home.

"What happened here?" Kea asked, looking as if she was trying to hold in laughter.

"I guess they were waiting for us," Mel replied with a shrug of her shoulders. That made Kea burst into laughter. When Kea laughed, Kyo and Yuki awoke, Kyo in a fast, jerking motion, and Yuki slowly raising his head. "G'morning." Mel grinned a wide grin, and Kea laughed harder.

"Gah, did I fall asleep?" Kyo looked extremley angry, as if falling asleep had meant that he'd lost to the rat.

"I guess so. But don't worry," Mel said quickly, not wanting them to feel as if it was rude. "I don't mind! I thought it was sweet that you guys were waiting for us." She quickly stared down at her feet, hoping that her face wasn't red.

"Yeah, well, don't get used to it," Grumped Kyo, looking away. Yuki smacked the back of the cat's head, obviously having fully woken up now. Kea had stopped laughing, but was now still snickering. Mel's eyes widened as she quickly remembered to peel her shoes off. She grinned sheepishly, and Kea did the same. Mel realized that Hatori had dissapeared, and poked her head outside. His car was gone, too. He must've had already left. Mel sighed.

Meanwhile, Kyo had gotten mad at Yuki for smacking his head, so now it was turning into a battle. Mel cried out in surprise as a pillow went flying towards her and hit her in the face. She flinched as it plopped onto the ground. Kyo and Yuki stopped their battle abruptly and crowded around Mel, asking if she was alright.

"I'm fine," Mel muttered, embarassed that they were making such a big deal over a pillow hitting her in the face. So the battle was ended for good, and Yuki put the pillow back on the couch that they'd thrown it off of. Mel looked over at Kea. She looked as bored as Mel was. It was odd, too, because they'd just gotten back to the home they'd wanted to have been at the whole time they were at Hatori's.

"Can we do something?" Suggested Kea grumpily. Kyo and Yuki exchanged a very relucant, yet questioning, glance.

"Like what?" Yuki asked in his kind voice.

"I dunno. Something fun. Do you guys play any sports?" Mel's head shot up. She absolutely _loathed _sports. She didn't know why, she just did. She hated excercise for one thing, but would walk around the block every once in a while, as long as she was listening to her iPod. But that was back at America. Here, there was nothing else to do.

"Sure. What sport?" Yuki looked slightly excited too, his eyes sparkling.

"Soccer?" That was the only sport Mel could tolerate.

"What's soccer?" Kyo growled, looking confused and pissed at the same time.

"Soccer's a fun game! It's simple, too. I'd explain it to you, but we need a ball," Mel muttered, looking away.

"How big?" Kea asked. Her interest already seemed peaked.

"Well... big enough to kick it around." Mel gave a half-grin, not knowing how to describe it. Yuki stared at them all with a look that said that he had an idea. He knew just what to do.

*********************************************************************************************************

They were now playing soccer. Yuki had went and got a watermelon from who-knows-where. (A/N Again, probably his secret base. ;3) And they used two trees next to each other with a huge gap inbetween for the goal. So they were kicking the watermelon around. Mel and Yuki were the goalies for either teams. It was girls v.s. boys, although Kyo had complained that he'd wanted to verse the "damn rat." Mel and Kea had solemnly promised that he could verse Yuki after this round.

It turned out that everyone was having fun with the new game. Kyo seemed to be going easy on Kea, though. He was lightly kicking the watermelon away, and occasionally would stumble out of the way. One of the times when he stumbled, he landed flat on his face, having full-on tripped. "Stupid cat," Spat Yuki, as Mel couldn't help but laugh. Kea snickered quietly, but ended up helping Kyo get to his feet, though she put on a face that said she didn't want to.

Mel watched Kyo glare at Yuki before lightly kicking the watermelon towards the goal.

Mel crouched down and caught the watermelon in her hands. It hurt slightly, pushing her backwards. She looked up at Kyo and smirked, then rolled the watermelon towards Kea. She gave her friend two thumbs up and waited. Kea swerved backwards towards Yuki, and tapped the watermelon with her foot. It rolled at Yuki's feet, so he jumped out of the way, causing it to go straight into the goal. "You're supposed to catch it," Laughed Mel.

"Sorry," Yuki said, chuckling slightly himself. He went behind the trees and grabbed the watermelon, tossing it towards Kyo. Kyo's quick cat reflexes sent his arms shooting up, and he caught the melon before it could smash his face in.

"Damn rat, you did that on purpose!" Snarled Kyo, his tangerine-coloured hair sticking up on all angles.

"So what if I did?" Yuki asked, crossing his arms and smirking.

"So I'm gonna beat you to a pulp!" Retorted Kyo, his hands shaking as he put pressure against the watermelon.  
"Don't break it," Kea snapped at Kyo, snatching the watermelon from him before it could burst.

"We're switching teams," Announced Kyo.

"Okay," Mel muttered quietly. She knew that it'd end up with her and Kea being the goalies. And it did. Kea was on Kyo's team, as the goalie. And Mel was on Yuki's team, also as the goalie. And it was a war once more.

Kyo wasn't letting back this time; he kicked the watermelon as hard as he could each time, and it would go flying towards Mel, who would fearfully duck, seeing the force pressing forward on the watermelon. It would fly over Mel's head, and Kyo would shout out, "Beat that, damn rat!"

Then Yuki would get the ball and kick it lightly towards Kea. Kea would always catch it, snort, and toss it back at Kyo.

Then, one of the times, Mel forgot to duck. The watermelon struck her in the head, and she fell backwards, gasping from the pain. She couldn't see! She'd gone blind! Mel started to panic, while she felt tears slide down her cheeks. _STOP CRYING,_ She shouted at herself, but to no avail. She continued sobbing frantically while trying to figure out how to see again. Suddenly, she could see once more, and could breath a lot better. The watermelon had got stuck on her head! That was why she'd been unable to see. She felt melon juice slicked in her hair, and it dripped down her face. She prayed that it hid the tears.

"Are you crying, Mel?" Yuki asked. Mel blinked and rubbed the juice out of her blurry eyes, then stared up. Yuki was crouching over her, with Kyo standing next to Kea, who was yelling at him for striking Mel with a watermelon.

"I-I-I'm fine," Whimpered Mel. But her voice shook, giving away the fact that she indeed _was _crying. This caused Kea to get angrier.

"LOOK WHAT YOU DID, IDIOT!" She snapped at Kyo, practically bristling.

"IT'S NOT MY FAULT! IT WAS... HER FAULT! SHE SHOULD'VE DUCKED!" Kyo shot back.

"CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS, MEL?" Kea yelled, turning towards Mel again. Mel flinched. "HE'S SAYING IT WAS YOUR FAULT!"

"Yeah, I should've been paying attention to the game. Sorry," Whispered Mel, looking away.

"GRRR... IT'S NOT _YOUR _FAULT, MEL! IT'S _HIS_ FAULT!" Kea pointed at Kyo, wheeling on him again. As they continued nearly blowing Mel's eardrums out, Mel tried to wipe the melon juice and tears off her face.

"Let's go inside and clean your face up," Suggested Yuki, since she still had sticky melon juice in her hair and covering her face. Mel nodded gratefully, no longer feeling pained. They went inside, and Yuki got a wet rag out, wiping Mel's face off.

Mel was glad that the juice was red, because it hid her blush. She liked the feeling of the cool rag sliding against her red hot face. When Yuki finished cleaning her face, he asked her if she wanted to was her hair out. Mel nodded her head and put it under the faucet, then turned it on. The water rushed into her hair, soaking it, and causing the melon juice to wash out. After her hair was soaking wet, she turned the faucet off and carefully moved her head away from the faucet before lifting her head up. Yuki started laughing, causing Mel to be puzzled.  
"Sorry. You're hair is... dripping," Yuki said inbetween laughs, seeming embarassed about laughing at it. Mel grinned lopsidedly.

"It's okay." They went outside so that Mel's hair could dry. Kea and Kyo laughed at Mel's hair, too. This caused Mel to blush, feeling deeply embarassed about the fact that they were all laughing at her soaked-through hair. As the day came to an end, everyone got ready to go to bed. But not before Shigure told them something important.

"Someone's coming to meet you two tomorrow," Shigure told Kea and Mel. Mel sighed inwardly, but kept her smile on her face, not wanting to be rude. Then she and Kea went to bed, and as Mel sunk into sleep, she became nervous about the person she'd meet the next day.

**A/N Sorry this chapter wasn't long. ^.^; To everyone who reviews, I thank you humbly! You guys are the only reason I can continue! :3**


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